The Bombay High Court will continue to hear arguments on Thursday in the final hearing into petitions challenging the state government’s decision to provide 16 per cent reservation to the Maratha community.
Three petitions have been filed by advocates Jaishri Patil, Sanjeet Shukla and Dr Uday Dhople along with others, challenging the notification published by the government on November 30, 2018, providing reservation to the community in government jobs and educational institutions.
Last week, senior counsels Arvind Datar and Shrihari Aney and advocate Gunratan Sadavarte had argued for three days.
Datar had argued on the constitutional validity and legislative competence of the government, stating that the state lacked the legislative powers to pass such a bill. He had also said that the Supreme Court, in ‘Indra Sawhney and Others vs Union of India’, had held that 50 per cent reservation ceiling could not be exceeded except in tribal areas.
Aney had continued the arguments on the constitutional validity as well as on the reservation in the educational institutions. Aney had said that reservation in educational institutions such as those of law, medical and engineering was pointless as the graduates have little to do with government jobs.
“The aim of the Act is only to address employment in government jobs. Thus, although the Marathas are actually educationally backward, providing for reservation in education is unrelated with the object of the Act,” Aney said.
On Thursday, senior counsel Pradeep Sancheti is likely to argue on the Maharashtra Backward Classes Commission Report of 2018, and on the reservation in government jobs. Sancheti is likely to argue on Thursday and Friday, following which the state will argue.
